The present invention relates to a security hinge joint which may be used for containers or in other applications in which it is desirable to reduce the problem of tampering with the hinge joint.
Many different hinge arrangements have been used in the past. A common hinge arrangement for containers is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,261, issued July 17, 1979 to James Frater. This patent shows the use of a "gooseneck" type of hinge pin. All the hinge eyes are open (generally cylindrical with open ends). One end of the hinge pin has a "gooseneck" shape. The pin can be inserted from either end of the hinge, passing through all the hinge eyes, and is retained when the gooseneck portion snaps into a recess or hole in one of the hinge eyes.
While the use of a single, rigid hinge pin extending through all the hinge eyes provides important strength and rigidity to the hinge joint, several problems have been encountered with the gooseneck design. One problem is that, if the gooseneck portion is accidentally inserted out of its proper orientation, the gooseneck portion does not fit into its recess, and the hinge wire can work itself free through one of the open ends of the hinge. Second, in order to install the hinge pin, the gooseneck portion must be driven through a hinge eye in which it has an interference fit. Forcing the gooseneck through the hinge eye sometimes causes the hinge to break. Finally, it is possible to open a container with the gooseneck type of hinge simply by driving the pin out through one of the open hinge ends, pilfering the goods inside the container, and then replacing the hinge pin so that it is impossible to tell from the outside that the container has been tampered with.